Smarts Ain't Everything That's Important
by MasterofHearts1313
Summary: OK, back by popular demand, Dylan is here for his story. He is also joined by a new cast of friends and a leading lady. LeiaxDylan. Sequel to I Always Wanted My Kids to be Smart. Story should start soon.
1. Announcement

1Hi, Everybody, I'm back.

Okay, first off. This story is a sequel to I Always Wanted My Kids to be Smart, so unless you've read it, go and red that story first. Otherwise, this story won't make since.

Second off, for those who I know have read the first story, like Authors Notel and tsuki aoi usagi, I'm afraid this is only an announcement chapter. Don't worry, the story will start as soon as I figure out how it is going to begin.

Alright, so this is a sort of introduction. This story will mostly revolve around Dylan and Leia, but there are other characters, too. For starters, we will have your classic A Wonderful Life crew (Well, Galen and Nina died of old age '(...sniff ). Then there is Leia, of course. There may be some of the other special characters (Skye, Keria, Witch Princess, Harvest Goddess), but I'm afraid some of the HM:DS Cute characters, like Gotz and Thomas, will not be part of this story. There will also be no Mineral Town characters. However, given how this is like a next generation (I mean for heaven's sake, there was a fifteen year time skip), I'm going to tell you of the events and original characters to catch you up to speed.

First, of course, is Dylan. He is the son of Daryl and Muffy (DUH!). He is fifteen years old at the start of this story.

Nami and Gustafa also had gotten married in I Always Wanted My Kids to be Smart. They went on to have two kids: Jareth (15) and Brecken (9). Jareth is Dylan's best friend and a friend of Richard's. He's pretty much a peacemaker, despite that he's pretty much a death-worshiping goth.

Somewhere between four to five months after the first two couple were married, Marlin and Celia were wed. They gave birth to Gloria (13).

Lumina and Rock were married shortly after the farmers. They live in the Inn (at least, until Romana finally decides to die, which will probably never happen). They have a son named Louis (11).

About a year after Daryl and Muffy's wedding, Carter and Flora got married. They finally decided to spring for a cottage next to the waterfall and dig site. Their son is Richard (14), who does not like Dylan.

A little more than a year after Carter and Flora were married, and strictly for business reasons (or so goes the claim), Vesta and Van decided to get married (and yes, they do continue to argue about who's fatter, though they both eat plenty). Now Gloria has a younger cousin named Vincent (10), a.k.a. Vinny. He is also rather large.

Not to leave Cody out (if you don't understand this, look up Pygmalion and Galatea on Wikipedia), I came up with Nori (Iron backwards). Nori is one of Cody's statues that was so life-like that she actually came to life. Cody later sculpted a daughter named Stella (Steel) (7).

Also, Hugh and Kate got married shortly before the beginning of this story, and Kate is pregnant at the beginning of this story.

Okay, so that makes up the important events. Be sure to keep an eye out for Skye. He's thieving all right, but he doesn't seem to be stealing girls' hearts (Or is he?).

Anyway, be sure to mark this story, so that you'll be updated on the first chapter's arrival.

Until next time, please tell me what you think of the characters.


	2. Chapter 1

1Smarts Ain't Everything That's Important

Chapter 1: A Guide to Taking Care of a Mermaid

Dylan was a young boy of fifteen. He had messy blond hair, and a pair of large, staring eyes that shimmered like emeralds. He wore a white lab coat made of high quality fabric, and his shoes were of the latest style. Normally, he would be out studying the flora (plants, not the woman) and fauna of Forget-Me-Not Valley or taking care of high-voltage equipment for his best friend, Jareth, for music videos. However, today he was sitting on the toilet in his downstairs bathroom.

Leia and Dylan just sort of stared at each other for a while. Leia the mermaid was stuck in Dylan's bathtub, having been seriously injured in a storm only the day before. Dylan had saved Leia, and now he was stuck watching her.

_What exactly am I supposed to be watching for? _thought Dylan. _It's not like she can just up and walk away._

"Ahem," coughed Leia. "Seeing how as we're not in the ocean, I'm guessing you're a human."

Dylan shifted slightly on the toilet. "Yes, that would be the case," he said. "And you would be a mermaid. Am I correct?"

"That's right," Leia replied. She would have lifted her fish tail, but it hurt if she moved too much. "So how long do you think I'll be stuck here?"

"I'm not entirely sure," said Dylan. "I haven't exactly experimented with wound recovery rates. You would be better off asking my mother, she studied medicine."

"Oh," said Leia. She sunk down into the water until only her eyes weren't submerged. She started blowing bubbles in exasperation.

Dylan just continued to sit there. Having caught a mermaid, he would have thought that things would be more exciting. However, his parents had forbidden him from telling anyone about Leia. All he could do now was sit silently and watch.

Leia soon fell asleep, but Dylan stayed. He put on his reading glasses. He pulled out a small notepad and a pen and wrote:

_As far as my studies have gone, mermaids don't seem to do well when severely injured. I suppose that they must be a social race, in order to take care of the injured, but I have no evidence of this being the case. Fortunately, from watching the subject's sleeping patterns, it is evident that mermaids do have the ability to breathe underwater._

Dylan closed the book and put it and his glasses back in his coat pocket. He stretched himself out and leaned back, it wasn't long until he fell asleep as well.

A couple hours later, Dylan woke up to the sound of rumbling. "Another storm?" he asked as he sat up.

Leia, who was also awake, blushed. "Um, no," she said, looking down at the water. "I'm kind of hungry."

"Oh," said Dylan. He stood up. "Then I'll get you something."

Dylan walked out of the bathroom. He climbed up the stairs that led to the ground floor. Once surfaced, he made his way to the kitchen.

As Dylan reached the kitchen door, Muffy, his mother, stepped out of it. "Oh, and what are you doing here?" she asked.

"I'm just getting something for Leia to eat," Dylan mumbled as he shuffled past his mother. He looked around the kitchen. Realizing he was hungry himself, he picked up an apple and took a bite out of it. Now, let's see here, he thought. From most accounts that I've heard of, mermaids, being friends with the sea life, are vegetarian. And given that she's a girl, I suppose she'd prefer sweet foods. He opened the fridge and took out several peaches, a bunch of grapes, a couple bananas, a crate of strawberries, and, for good measure, a sweet potato.

Dylan took the food back downstairs and into the kitchen. "Here," he said, handing a peach to Leia.

Leia took the peach and studied it. After a minute, she took a bite. She chewed a couple times, but stopped. Her eyes shrunk.

"Are you okay?" Dylan asked, seeing Leia's expression.

Leia responded by spitting the bite of peach across the bathroom. The peach itself was pitched after it. "What was that!" she exclaimed. "No, don't tell me. It was simply too disgusting. How can anyone eat something that sweet? Don't you have any fish?"

Dylan stared at Leia in confusion. "Fish?" he asked.

"Yes," said Leia. "Fish. Do you not know what fish are?"

"I know what fish are," Dylan replied harshly.

"Then get me some!" demanded Leia. "Not to be mean, but I'm starving!"

"Fine," Dylan snapped. "I'm going. I'm going."

About ten minutes later, Dylan came into the bathroom with his arms full of fish. "Here, take it," he said as he threw one of the fish at Leia.

Leia eagerly started biting into the fish. Dylan continued to hand fish to the mermaid until they were all reduced to bones.

Shortly after Leia had eaten, Muffy came downstairs and into the bathroom. She motioned for Dylan to leave. "I need to change Leia's bandages," she explained.

Dylan walked out of the bathroom, the door slamming behind him. He pulled out his glasses, notepad and pen and wrote:

_Subject has proven that the belief that mermaids are vegetarian is false. She exhibits hostile behavior, which could either be from dramatic environment change or her wound. However, I'm beginning to wonder if my parents are having me to watch her as some sort of sick apology for not letting me have a pet when I was younger._

Dylan put his research materials away just as Muffy came out of the bathroom. "Alright, she should be good for the night," she told Dylan. "I changed her bandages and filled the tub with fresh water, so all you have to do is keep and eye on her." With this, she left Dylan and went upstairs.

Realizing what time it was, Dylan went into his bedroom and grabbed a pillow and a blanket. He went into the bathroom, and found that Leia was asleep. _Makes sense. I would think that healing from such a vicious wound would take a lot out of you, _he thought as he put his bedding on the toilet. He sat down, curled up in the blanket, and fell asleep himself.

Okay, that's the first chapter. Given the pairing, I suppose we all know who wears the pants in this relationship (even though it's physically impossible). Anyways, I'm sorry if Leia seems a little mean, but you have to realize that being pained whenever you move is going to make you grouchy. Also, I did my research for this chapter. I find it hilarious that it's not just that fish is the only food Leia likes, but that she actually HATES any other kind of food in the game.

Anyways, until next time, please review.


	3. Chapter 2

1Okay, just so things make sense, this chapter picks up a week after Leia was found. Jareth, curious about what his best friend had been up to for the entire week, has been downstairs and seen Leia.

On with the show!

Smarts Ain't Everything That's Important

Chapter 2: Today's Youth

The doorbell rang, and Muffy opened the door. Standing outside the door was a young man wearing small sunglasses, a black, pointed hat, a small, black denim jacket, a blood-red shirt, black jeans, and a pair of green tennis shoes. A dead goddess drop was placed in his hat, and a guitar that looked like a giant skeletal hand was strapped across his back.

"Why, hello, Jareth," said Muffy. She turned back to the inside of the house. "Dylan! Jareth is here!"

"Send him down!" Dylan called back up.

Muffy turned and smiled at Jareth. "Hold on a minute," she said, leaving the door open and walking downstairs. She marched into the bathroom to find Dylan still watching a sleeping Leia. "Dylan, Jareth is here," she said tartly.

"And I said send him down," replied Dylan.

"I don't think so, mister," said Muffy. "Today, you are going outside. Look at you. You're pale as a ghost." Before Dylan could protest, she stated, "I'll watch Leia. You go outside. It would sound utterly ridiculous if a young man like you got stuck to a toilet."

Dylan stood up and walked over to the bathroom door. "You're sure?" he asked his mother.

"I'm-" Dylan left before Muffy replied, "sure."

Dylan shut the front door behind as he ran out of the yard, dragging Jareth. "Oh, thank heavens," he shouted. "I was getting sick of just sitting there."

Jareth dug his heels into the ground to force Dylan to stop. "Woah, hold up, brother," he said.

Dylan stopped. "Oh," he said as he let Jareth stand up. "Is there something in particular that you wanted to do?"

"Yeah," Jareth said as he stood up and brushed the dirt off himself. "I was thinking we could go down and see Cody. I hear he's starting on a new project, and it's going to be big."

"Fine with me," said Dylan. "I'm up for anything, as long as it doesn't involve you know what."

The two boys walked down by turtle pond, and Jareth caught sight of a snake slithering through the grass. "Oh, hold on a minute," he said as he quietly followed the snake.

"You can't be serious," Dylan said as he followed.

Jareth soon found a frog sitting in the middle of a clearing in the grass. The snake was slowly sneaking up on the frog. "Oh, come on, Dylan," he called. "Just think of it as one of your nature studies."

"Oh, all right," Dylan said as he walked up. He pulled out his glasses and notepad and stood beside Jareth.

The snake continued to inch toward the frog as Dylan took notes on the spectacle. About a minute later, the snake seized the frog and swallowed it whole.

"Yes," Jareth exclaimed in a whisper. "Another one bites the dust."

Dylan sighed as he book his glasses and notepad away. "Quite honestly, seeing how your father is a nature-lover, you wouldn't think that you'd rejoice over animals killing each other like that."

Jareth stood up and started walking. "Hey, it's all a part of nature," he replied. "Just like poison mushrooms, but everyone seems to think they're terrible, too."

Dylan tapped his chin. "Gee, I don't know, maybe it's because poison mushrooms are poisonous!" he shouted. He sighed again. "You know, it's behavior like that that led to Hugh and Kate not allowing you within a hundred feet of their house."

"Oh, come on. I only watch death. I don't cause it," Jareth remarked.

"Yeah, well you sure fool a lot of people," Dylan replied. "Oh, speaking of which, we're coming up on Cody's house, so no more of that talk."

As Dylan and Jareth approached the trailer, the saw the herculean artist and his rust-color haired, steel-grey eyed wife. Cody was bending a large bar of metal into what looked like a circular base. The two boys were just able to see clearly when...

"Hi, Dylan. Hi, Jareth," a little girl that looked like a younger form of Nori said as she popped up next to the two. "Did you come to see what daddy's doing? Come on. Come see." She skipped happily away to her parents, her movements, though a little girl's, bizarrely mechanical.

Dylan recovered from his near heart attack, and Jareth replaced his bony guitar, which he had pulled out like a sword, on his back. They followed after Stella. Though she was energetic, playful, and made a hundred percent out of metal, she was still as quiet as her father when she moved.

"Hi, Cody. Hi, Nori," the two boys greeted as they walked up. They noticed that what they had thought was going to be a base looked a lot more like a lump. "What's that?" asked Dylan.

Stella, both her parents a rather quiet kind of person, was the one to reply. "Mommy and daddy said they were going to make me a baby brother!" she said excitedly.

Now, most teenage boys would have bust up laughing at this comment, but Dylan was too scientific, Jareth was too close to nature, and they were both too romantic to find humor in such a topic.

"Well, that's nice," said Jareth. "When will you have him?"

Cody answered this time. "Maybe a week, maybe a month. Maybe even a few months," he said. "At least, some time before Kate has her baby."

Stella looked confused. "Daddy, where's Kate's baby coming from?" she asked. "Kate doesn't do metalwork."

Though both boys weren't ones to mock it, they weren't going to sit through Stella being taught the birds and the bees, so they said their good-byes and high-tailed it away from the trailer.

Having to take the long route, due to Jareth being forbidden from going anywhere near Hugh and Kate's house, they stopped near the back of the Inner Inn.

"So, what do you want to do now?" asked Dylan.

"Well," panted Jareth. "We could always go to the dig site."

"Nuh-uh, I'm not going anywhere near there," stated Dylan.

"I hear they found some interesting fossils recently," said Jareth.

"Which Richard will probably be all over," sneered Dylan.

"I also hear that they found a new jewel mine," Jareth said with a smirk.

"I said n– wait a minute. What kind of jewels we talking about?" asked Dylan.

"I don't know. We'd have to go see," said Jareth.

"Fine," Dylan growled.

So, the two teenagers headed for the bridge and crossed it. They walked up the dirt path that led to the dig site. On the way, they passed Vesta's farm. They could see two figures working in the field. One was a young brunette girl who, despite being a healthy young farmer, was a frail looking child. The other was a tiger-haired boy who, despite being only ten years old, was nearly six-and-a-half feet tall and three hundred pounds. Both farmers noticed the two boys and waved.

"Wonderful day we're having, isn't it?" said Gloria, the girl. "It's supposed to rain later."

"Yes, a perfect day for a farmer," said Vincent, the young giant. "Days like this makes for better crops, which means better profit and better food."

"Yes, it's days like these that make the world go round," Jareth replied with a wave.

"A very fine day it is," Dylan said, stretching in the sun. "My mother was right. It's too nice a day to stay cooped up in the lab."

As the boys left the farm, the heard a trio of voices chorus, "Jareth! Dylan! Wait for us!"

Dylan and Jareth turned to see Nik, Nak, and Flak, the harvest sprites, jumping off the farm's fence and running after them.

Jareth placed a hand on the ground to let the harvest sprites up, and said, "Nik, Nak, Flak, how's it going my brothers in nature?"

"Great!" answered Nik.

"The weather's good. Tons of sunshine and plenty of laughs," said Nak.

"Not to mention a bountiful harvest is at hand," said Flak.

"Great, great," said Jareth. "Me and Dylan were just heading for the dig site. Care to join us, fellas?"

"You bet," answered the harvest sprites.

"Oh, let's get going already," mumbled Dylan.

"Alright, let's go," announced Jareth.

The little band continued up the road until they came to the dig site. They went down into the pit, and Dylan was immediately running around. He found the fossils, which were nothing of great interest. They were from a species that he had seen plenty of. He also saw plenty of artifacts, but they were of no interest to a man of science. It was when he got to the back that he found something exciting.

"Rubies and sapphires!" exclaimed the young scientist. "Oh, and emeralds, too. Oh, Jareth, come help me collect some."

"Coming, coming," said Jareth. He flexed out his skeleton hand to act like a shovel. He walked over and sunk it into the crystal. Nik, Nak, and Flak helped pick the jewels out of the ground.

Soon, the group was walking out of the dig site, Dylan's arms full of gems, Jareth carrying some gems, a couple skulls, and a curious-looking statue, and the harvest sprites working together to carry a particularly large chunk of emerald, saying that it would make for a great gift for the Harvest Goddess.

The group was just about to leave, when a scholarly voice called, "I should have expected to see you here, you little crow. You always came around to when something shiny is found."

Nik, Nak, and Flak hid behind Jareth. The pop star turned with the diva scientist and they both groaned, "Hello, Richard."

An imperious youth with black, wavy hair and violet eyes walked up to the two teenagers. Despite all his might, it's a little difficult to be imposing when you only reach your opponent's chin in height. "Jareth, you flower-clad zombie, you decided to come to my plot of dirt as well."

"Look, Richard, we're not here to fight," said Jareth.

"I know you're not here to fight," Richard stated matter-of-factly. He turned to Dylan. "But the crow is always ready to fight."

"I fight with wits, not fists," said Dylan.

"Oh, come off it," sneered Richard. "If you're going to snatch some treasure, you might as well fight for it." He took his martial artist stance.

"Fine," Dylan growled. He threw off his lab coat, revealing his scarlet silk shirt and his silver denim pants. "But like I said, I fight with wits." he reached into his pocket and pulled out a device that looked like a pistol.

Jareth dropped his load, ran over, and grabbed the device from Dylan. "Hold up, what are you doing with a gun?" he asked Dylan. (For heaven's sake, Harvest Moon is an E-rated game series.)

"That's not a gun," explained Dylan. "That's a freeze ray."

Richard grabbed the device from Jareth. "Freeze ray? Yeah right," he sneered. "Why, I bet this toy only shoots blue sparkles." He pulled the trigger, and a blue beam shot out and froze the waterfall from top to bottom. His jaw dropped.

"Yes, thank you for the presentation," Dylan snapped, taking the freeze ray from Richard. "Now, we must be going." He put on his lab coat, grabbed his jewels, and marched off. Jareth, with the harvest sprites in tow, followed close behind.

As the group passed Vesta's farm, Nik, Nak, and Flak said their good-byes and jumped into the farm's property.

"It's getting pretty late," Dylan noted, looking at the sky. "We better go home."

Jareth yawned. "I'm right behin-" he started to waver.

Dylan leaned over in time to catch Jareth on his shoulder. He sighed. "You've been staying up in order to exhaust yourself again, haven't you?"

Jareth strained to stay awake. He murmured, "Hey, if _she_ notices, then it's worth it."

"Jareth, I've told you once, I've told you a hundred times, you can't get that _girl's_ attention because she doesn't exist," muttered Dylan.

Dylan yawned again. "Dude, you're next door neighbors with a couple of living statues, mukumuku is one of your dad's best friends, we're best friends with a bunch of harvest sprites, and you have a mermaid in your basement. How could you not believe in _her_?" he argued.

"All those can be explained by science," stated Dylan. "Magic is not real, so _she_ can not be real."

"Whatever," Jareth yawned. "Doesn't matter if you believe or not. I know _she's_ real, and that's all that matters."

"Yeah, whatever you say, Jareth," said Dylan. He walked up to the front door of the colorful yurt and knocked it a couple times with his head.

The door was soon answered by a girl that looked like the incarnation of fear, with blood-red hair, icy blue eyes, and dressed in more black than the night sky.

"Hello, Brecken," said Dylan. "Look, Jareth exhausted himself out again. Could you maybe take him."

Brecken's eyes shined as she brightly said, "Sure thing, Dylan." She skipped bak into the house. "Mum! Da! Jareth tried killing himself again."

Dylan shook his head. It was so wrong that a girl that was dressed so darkly was raised to be the cheeriest child in the world. It was even worse that she said everything like she was announcing candy and money was falling from the sky.

Soon, Gustafa and Nami came to the door. "Thank you for bringing Jareth home, Dylan," Nami said, sighing as she took her son from the young scientist.

"Yeah, thanks, little dude," Gustafa said as he helped his wife.

"I'll see you later," Dylan said, standing straight up. He walked back to his house.

When Dylan opened the door, he was greeted by his parents. "Hello, honey," Muffy said cheerily. "We have a surprise for you."

Daryl held the trapdoor open for the other two, and climbed down after them.

Dylan was confused as to what his parents did while he was gone. It took him a minute, but he soon realized that one of the basement walls had a giant fish tank installed into it. Leia was swimming freely in the water.

'What do you think?" asked Daryl. "Now you two won't have to be cooped up in the little bathroom of yours."

"Yes, much better," said Muffy. "I admit that Leia seems to be doing better, but I don't think she can be sent back to sea yet."

"Hmm," Dylan walked up to the tank. "This certainly seems a much better prospect than keeping her in that bathtub."

"Wonderful," exclaimed Muffy. "We'll just leave you two alone now, what with it being so late and all." She pushed Daryl up the stairs.

Dylan was inspecting the bols in the tank, when he realized that Leia was staring at him. He walked to the left, and to the right, and backed up. He walked into the bathroom, and looked out a few minutes later, only to see that Leia was still staring at him. "What?" he demanded.

"What do you have?" Leia asked, pointing at Dylan's arms.

Dylan looked down to see that he was still carrying the jewels he had gotten from the dig site. "Oh, just a few jewels is all," he explained, walking to the tank.

"Could I see?" asked Leia.

I don't see why not," Dylan said, handing the jewels up to the top of the tank as well as he could.

Leia reached down for the jewels. When she had them, she looked at them with awe. She swam down to the bottom and placed the jewels on the tank's floor, so she could look at them better.

Dylan watched these antics. He took out his notepad and wrote:

_Subject mermaid is now able to swim properly. This will allow for better study as to mermaid habits. Subject has also proved that mermaids have a natural attraction to gems. Further study is needed to attest if this is true about all treasure._

Dylan put the notepad away and looked back at Leia. She had curled up at the bottom of the rank and fallen asleep. He looked at the clock on the wall. "It is getting late," he said. He took off his jacket and laid down in his bed, which was just across the room from Leia's tank. He fell asleep to the sound of Leia's bubbles.

Okay, that's it for this chapter. Stay tuned to see what happens nex-

Skye: Excuse me.

Yes?

Skye: I was told that I would feature in this story, but I don't seem to have even been mentioned yet.

Well, hold on, Mr. Ego. The next chapter is going to be all about you.

Skye: Really?

Yes, and the sooner you leave me alone, the sooner I can write it.

Skye: Alright. (Salutes coyly and walks away) I have more important things to do than talk with a half-wit author, anyways.

(Grinds teeth) Okay, people, be sure to tune in next time to see Skye make his entrance. Until then, please review.


	4. Chapter 3

1Smarts Ain't Everything That's Important

Chapter 3: Enter, the Phantom Thief

Dylan was laying in bed this afternoon. Nothing too terribly exciting was happening outside, and he didn't really have anything urgent to do. For all he knew, Jareth was still sleeping, even though it had been nearly forty-six hours since his friend fell asleep. Yesterday, he had been able to obtain enough jewels to satisfy his entire family and more. He had even read up on some basic do-it-yourself jewelers' guides.

Nope, today just seemed like a lazy kind of day. That is, until he looked sidelong at Leia, who was now sorting through her gem collection which now included several diamonds and pink diamonds as well as the previous jewels.

"Do they have that sort of thing where you come from?" Dylan asked, sitting up on his bed.

Leia looked up at Dylan. Her voice was slightly muffled by the water, but Dylan could still hear, "Well, we have lots of these rubies and sapphires and emeralds." She gestured to the pile of jewels she had discarded to the side. "They are too common. Practically nothing of interest." She held up a diamond and a pink diamond. "But we don't have anything like these. I would very much like to take these home with me."

This caught Dylan's interest. "Really, and it like back at your home?" he asked, taking out his notepad and pen.

Leia swam up to the top of the tank. "Well," she started. "It's not very much like up here on land. We live in homes made out of stone and coral and decorated with lovely anemones, and from what I can tell from my experience up here, you people seem to like making your homes out of this hard, dull-colored stuff. Not very attractive."

"Well, not many homes are made out of metal," explained Dylan. "Most of our homes up here are made of stone or wood, and painted many different colors."

"Hmm, well, it also is much easier to get food down there," Leia continued. "All you have to do is swim up and catch it. None of this waiting until you get food business."

"Well, I'm sorry, but even we humans have to wait in order to get food. We also have to pay for it," said Dylan.

"That's another thing I don't get. You humans work all the time!" exclaimed Leia. "Haven't you guys ever heard of playing or having fun? It gets so boring doing nothing but swim around in this tank all day."

"Well, I most certainly am sorry," said Dylan, excitedly writing notes. "But you should have asked. Tell me, what sort of games do you play?"

So, for the next half hour or so, Leia and Dylan continued to talk about Leia's culture: games they played, pastimes they enjoy, music, dancing, songs. It was all so much, Dylan finally couldn't restrain himself.

"After so many years of seeking mermaids, and scientists have failed to learn a thing!" he shouted. "But I, Dylan, master genius, have learned so much! The mysteries of nature are being revealed to me!"

The door that led downstairs burst open, and Jareth ran down the stairs. "Woah, dude! Wait for me before you go dissecting the mermaid!" he shouted heartily. He stopped when he saw the other two staring at him in disgust. "Oh! You're not dissecting the mermaid." He blushed. "That was embarrassing."

Dylan scoffed. "I dissect Leia? Why would you even think such a thing?" he sneered. "Why that is downright despicable. Why, I would rather personally amputate my own arms, disabling me from continuing my experiments, than to defile the corpse of the mermaid. She is a living creature. No, she is practically human. It would be a crime against nature to harm such a being, even if she had previously died on her own accord."

"Woah, dude, sorry, misunderstanding," Jareth excused.

"Humph, just don't mention again," snorted Dylan.

"Okay," said Jareth. "Anyways, I came over to ask for your help." He took a piece of paper out of his pocket and handed it to Dylan. "Grandma Ruby found that on the front door of the inn this morning."

Dylan flipped the paper open and read the following:

_Dear Inn Owner,_

_I have come to hear of your wonderful cooking skills, and have decided to inform you that you are my prospective household of interest tonight. Please have a dish of finest curry for my arrival._

_Until Midnight,_

_The Phantom Thief Skye_

Dylan looked up from the letter. "So, a guy is ordering takeout from your grandmother," he stated bluntly. "What's the problem?"

"No, the guy's not ordering food. He's stealing food," said Jareth. "I would very much appreciate it if you would come help me stake out the Inner Inn, best friend."

Dylan sighed. "Alright, I'll be with you soon. Just let me get ready," he said.

Jareth nodded. "See you in a bit, dude," he said, giving Dylan a nod and a thumbs-up. He ran over and jumped up out of the basement.

Dylan walked over to grab his pack.

"Um... Dylan?" said Leia.

"Yes, Leia?" Dylan replied.

"Did you... Did you really mean what you said? You know, about the whole cutting your own arms off before hurting me?" she asked shyly, a blush creeping across her face.

Dylan stood where he was, his face looking like a tomato. "Yes, of course," he answered drily. "Why, with all the recovering you had to do lately, I'd feel horrible about hurting you any more."

"Oh," Leia said quietly.

There was a long moment of uncomfortable silence.

"Well, I have to get going," said Dylan. "Jareth is waiting for me and all." He walked over to the stairs. "Don't stay up. I'm guessing I'll be home late."

"Bye," said Leia.

"Bye," replied Dylan. He swiftly walked up the stairs.

About ten minutes later, Dylan was in front of the Inner Inn. Jareth was standing there with Ruby.

"Oh, hello, Dylan. Jareth told me you'd be coming," said Ruby. "It's really nice of you to help us with this crisis."

"Think nothing of it," answered Dylan. "I've been wanting something exciting to happen."

"Well, you came to the right place, buddy," Jareth stated, walking up to Dylan and patting him on the shoulder. "We'll teach that thief a thing or two. He'll regret ever trying to steal from my grandma!"

"Well, that's nice to hear," said Ruby. "If you boys get hungry, there's some cake and pie in the kitchen. Help yourselves." She walked into the Inn, and the boys were left alone.

Dylan and Jareth stood vigilant outside the Inner Inn for a long time. Jareth just played his guitar, and Dylan sat silently in thought.

"Something troubling you, dude?" asked Jareth.

"No, I was just thinking," replied Dylan.

"About Leia?" asked Jareth.

Dylan stabbed a hand over Jareth's mouth. "Sh! We don't talk about her outside of the basement," he scolded. "His stomach rumbled. "Say, what time is it?"

Jareth looked up at the sky. Staring at the stars, he answered, "About a quarter after ten."

"Well, I suppose we have a little while before midnight," said Dylan. "What do you say we go and see what your grandmother left out?"

Jareth replaced his guitar on his back. "Sounds good to me," he said as he followed Dylan inside.

The two teenagers walked into the kitchen and found that Ruby had left out a carrot cake, a strawberry cake, a grape pie, and a peach pie. There was also a bowl that they soon figured was the finest curry. They ignored it and started digging into the desserts.

After a few minutes, Dylan sniffed the air. "What's that?" he asked Jareth.

Jareth sniffed the air. "Don't worry, dude. It's only the curry," he replied.

"I know that it's curry," shouted Dylan. "It's just that it smells rather strong."

Both boys turned to where the finest curry was sitting. They saw a young man, maybe about twenty-six years old, sneaking his way towards the bowl.

"Hey! Who are you?" both boys asked as if they had rehearsed it.

The white-haired man stopped. Hd definitely had rehearsed his part. He pulled a red rose out of his jacket, took a rather elegant stance and announced with very much bravado, "I am the shadow that walks the nights." He changed to another elegant stance. "I am the little prince for all the maidens to love." He changed his stance again. "I am the one, the only, the Phantom Thief Skye!" A cinematic rain of rose petals followed his introduction.

Dylan and Jareth looked at each other, and back at Skye, struggling to hold back their laughter. "You're the thief?" Dylan asked in disbelief.

Skye stood straight up. "Quite so," he replied. "And I'm afraid I can't let you get in my way." He took a very dramatic pose. "Maiden Chick Beam!"

A pink flask burst from the thief's eyes and filled the room. After it faded, Dylan and Jareth stared blankly at Skye, who was wearing a grin of great self-confidence. "Don't worry, you'll be able to move again in about an hour."

Dylan and Jareth couldn't help themselves. They doubled over and fell out of their chairs in laughter. "Yeah, sure buddy!" said Jareth. Dylan was laughing so hard that he was crying.

Skye flinched, losing all of his cool air. He looked at the two laughing teenagers for a few moments before mumbling, "You two aren't girls, are you?" His face turned bright pink as the boys only laughed harder. He grabbed the bowl and ran rather clumsily out of the room.

After about ten minutes, Dylan and Jareth had stopped laughing and stood up.

"Hey, I'm sorry, Jareth," said Dylan. "I guess we failed."

"Ah, it's okay," replied Jareth. "My grandma was the one who made the curry for him. I don;t she expected us to stop him." He chuckled again. "But it was worth staying up to see that lunatic, wasn't it?"

"Sure was," Dylan said with a smirk. "Listen, I should get going. I don't really care for staying up late."

"'Kay, see you later," Jareth called as Dylan left.

In about fifteen minutes, Dylan was down in his basement room. He saw that Leia was asleep, so he merely walked over to his bed, fell on it, and fell asleep.

Okay, that's it for the third chapter. I tried to make up for my previous error concerning Leia. I forgot that she really hates any jewels other than normal and pink diamonds. I also am trying to stick to a similar pattern as the heart events, so I'd like to know what you think of my interpretation.

Skye: (Taking trademark pose) Excuse me, I have something to ask you.

What, Skye?

Skye: Well, you don't seem to be very accurate with my heart events.

(Sighs) That's because you're wooing, not being wooed.

Skye: Ah, but it's so troublesome wooing- (Mouth is covered by MasterofHearts1313's hand).

Hold it. No spoiling the surprise. (Turns to audience) Anyways, thinks can only get interesting from here. Stay tuned, and please review.


	5. Chapter 4

1Okay, to all my fans, I'm sorry it took so long to post a new chapter. School and house life kept me pretty busy.

Also, I want to apologize to all HM:DS-playing, GriffinxMuffy-pairing people out there. I'm only a guy who has played HM:AWL, where, if you marry Muffy, she tells Griffin that he was like her father. Okay, just wanted to clear that up before the chapter's title insulted anyone.

Anyways, on with the show.

Smarts Ain't Everything That's Important

Chapter 4: A Day at Grandpa's

Dylan overslept the next, for about two hours extra. Actually, he probably would have slept longer, had Leia not decided to splash him with water.

Dylan twisted, sat straight up and spluttered. "Hey, what was that for!" he shouted at the mermaid.

Leia just leaned against the edge of her tank. "I bored," she replied. "Let's play something."

"Well, what do you want to play?" Dylan asked, taking off his lab coat and wrenching the water out of it. He looked at his shirt and grumbled, "Darn it, and this was silk, too."

Leia thought for a moment. "I know, how about reef ball!" she said happily.

"Can you play that above water?" asked Dylan.

Leia slumped on the tank's edge. "Oh, right, I forgot," she muttered. She soon jumped up again. "I know, how about catch."

"Well, okay," said Dylan. "But are you sure that's entertaining enough for you?"

"Yeah, hold on a minute," said Leia. She swam down to the bottom of the tank and came back up with a ruby. "We can use this."

"Alright, just let me get ready," replied Dylan. He threw his wet coat onto his bed and stood up. "Alright, I'm ready."

"Okay, here it comes," said Leia, winding up for the pitch.

"Woah! Wait! Leia! Not so har-"

Dylan was lucky enough to duck just before the ruby flew past and embedded itself in the wall behind him. The force was so strong that the whole house shook.

Dylan stood up and looked at the gem. He looked back at Leia and shouted, "What the heck! Are you trying to kill me!"

"Well, sorry!" shouted Leia. "I thought you were going to catch that!" She smirked and flipped her hair. "I didn't realize that you were a weakling."

"What did you say?" Dylan growled as he rushed over to the tank.

"Well, it's just that a merman would have caught that easily," Leia replied, waving Dylan off.

"Yeah, well, there's none of the resistence that water would make up here," Dylan grumbled, glaring at Leia.

Leia looked back at Dylan and giggled.

"What's so funny!" demanded Dylan.

Leia leaned towards Dylan and said, "You're cute when you're angry, you know that?"

Dylan blushed madly, causing Leia to laugh harder.

Soon, the metal hatch opened, and Dylan practically flew back to his bed.

Muffy walked down the steps and smiled at Dylan. "Hey, Dylan, how are you this morning?" she asked.

"Fine," Dylan replied, trying to hide his face.

"That's good to hear," said Muffy. She stepped closer to Dylan's bed. "Hey, I was just wondering if you would like to go to work with me?"

"You mean go to G's," replied Dylan. He didn't call Griffin grandpa. Not because it wasn't a biological relationship. It was the fact that Griffin always said that as long as he had hair on his nead and playing a guitar instead of shuffleboard that nobody going to call him grandpa. Dylan sat up. "Sure. It's been a while since I've seen him."

"Great," said Muffy. "Let's go."

About fifteen minutes later, Muffy and Dylan were at the Blue Bar.

"Hey, G," said Dylan as he walked in.

"Goo morning, Dylan," said Griffin.

"Hey, Griffin, you don't mind if Dylan stays here today, do you?" asked Muffy.

"'Course not," said Griffin. "Always glad to see the boy around."

"You know, I was thinking he could even work here," said Muffy.

"Oh, what did you have in mind?" asked Griffin.

"Well, you see..." from here, Muffy continued to whisper to Griffin. Dylan tried to eavesdrop, but he couldn't hear anything.

Soon, Griffin looked over Muffy's shoulder and said, "Well, he is the spitting image of ya."

Dylan's ears perked at this. "Wait a minute, what are you two planning?" he asked warily.

Muffy grabbed a hold of Dylan's arm. "Oh, come on. It'll be fun," she said as she drug him into the back room.

After about a half hour of struggling and protests, Dylan walked out of the back room in a red cocktail dress, high heels, and a wig that was the same color blond as his hair. Actually, if it wasn't for his lack of curves, you probably would have mistaken him for Muffy.

"What am I doing in this?" demanded Dylan.

"You're going to be helping mommy in the bar today," replied Muffy.

"Yes, but why am I dressed like a girl?" asked Dylan.

"Because you look cute like that," Muffy replied as though it were absolutely natural.

Dylan grumbled and walked off.

SO, Dylan played most of the afternoon as a volunteer waitress at the Blue Bar. He even got a wolf whistle from Patrick, or was it Kassey. He actually did pretty well for his first, except for the decking the whistling firework brother.

As evening approached, Muffy walked to the door and called Dylan to follow, when she saw a note attached to the door. It read:

Dear Bar Owner,

I have noticed that you carry a wide variety of drinks in your establishment, and I decided to tell you that I'm going to pay you a visit tonight to raid your stock.

Until Midnight,

The Phantom Thief Skye

Muffy ran over and handed the note to Griffin. "Well, gee," said Griffin. "I that don't beat it all. Why would anyone want to steal a drink."

"What are you guys talking about?" Dylan asked as he walked over, still dressed in the cocktail dress.

"Honey," Muffy said in a very sugary voice. "Could you stay here and help Griffin tonight? A thief wrote a letter that he was going to come raid his shelves."

"Oh no. Not him again," Dylan moaned. He looked down and noticed the dress. He smirked. He looked up at Muffy and said, "Sure, mom. Could I invite a couple of friends over to spend the night?"

"Don't see why not," said Griffin. "The more the merrier."

"Good," said Dylan. "Could I use your phone?"

Griffin pushed the phone on the bar closer to Dylan.

As Dylan was making his calls, Muffy turned to Griffin and said, "I do hope Dylan can help, but I need to go home. You know, make sure Daryl doesn't blow anything up and all that."

"Sure thing," replied Griffin. "I'll keep an eye on him as best I can."

"Thanks," Muffy said as she walked out the door.

About a half hour later, Dylan, Jareth, and Richard were standing in the Blue Bar's lobby, Dylan wearing his cocktail dress, Jareth wearing a black t-shirt, a black skirt, and full gothic make-up, and Richard in a green cocktail dress.

"What am I doing here?" asked Richard.

"Because I told you that you could beat up a thief," said Dylan.

"Yes, I know that," snapped Richard. "But why am I in a dress?"

"Trust me. It's all part of the plan," Dylan said slyly.

Jareth was looking in a mirror to check his make-up. "Hey, did you guys ever notice how much we look like our mothers?" he asked absentmindedly.

"Why, yes. I have wondered about that, too," said Dylan. "I find it very unusual how effeminate we look."

"Yeah, so what?" said Richard. "Just because we look like our mothers doesn't mean that we have to dress like them!"

Before the argument could continue, a strong scent of curry filled the bar. "Hurry, act natural," hissed Dylan.

The three cross-dressed teenage boys sat at the bar, acting as though they were talking.

Soon, the white-haired Skye entered the front door. "Hm, security is as poor as ever," he grumbled to himself. He noticed the three figures at the table. "Oh, hello there," he said with a bow and a broad grin.

"Oh, hello," said Dylan. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm here to steal a certain item that I need," said Skye. "And I'm afraid I can't let you interfere. Maiden Chick Beam!"

Pink flashed through the bar.

"What was that?" Richard whispered to Dylan, on the verge of laughter.

"Don't worry about it, just sit still," Dylan whispered back.

"Well, now I can do my work in peace," Skye said as he walked past the three and bahind the bar. He began skimming the shelves.

"So, what are you looking for?" asked Dylan.

"Nothing of your concern," replied Skye. He turned and bowed, despite Dylan stuck looking the other way. "But if you must know, I'm looking for a special gift for a special someone."

"What kind of special gift is a drink?" asked Jareth.

"A very good question, my dear girl," replied Skye. "But thisis something which I cannot explain."

"And why do you feel like you need to steal it?" asked Dylan.

"Because that is what I do as a notorious phantom thief," answered Skye.

"Notorious, huh?" said Dylan. He slowly turned around. "Then we would probably be pretty famous if we caught you."

Skye laughed. "Catch me? Why you silly girl, as you can see that is im-"

"RICHARD! NOW!" Dylan shouted.

Richard twisted in his seat and leapt at Skye, tackling the thief. "Ugh, not you guys, agian!"Skye exclaimed as he was just able to slip out of Richard's grip, but into the arms of Jareth and Dylan.

"Got ya!" Richard said as he grabbed onto Skye's shoulders.

"So you think," Skye said with a smirk as he struggled. "Special Phantom Thief Technique!"

The room suddenly turned dark and light again. The three boys were startled to see that Skye had escaped. They turned just in time to see the white-haired man running out the front door.

"How'd he do that!" shouted Richard, pointing after Skye.

"What the devil's with all the ruckus," Griffin grumbled as he walked into the front room.

"Sorry, G," said Dylan. "But the thief got away."

"Oh, he did, did he?" Griffin said as he walked over to the shelves. "Then let's see what he took." He perused the shelves. "Huh, well that's weird."

"What, G?" asked Dylan.

"Well, he seemed to have only taken a couple Relax Tea tea bags," replied Griffin.

"Relax Tea?" asked the three boys.

"Yes, it's weird," Griffin said as he looked over the box. "I would have thought he would have taken the whole box, at least." He put the box back on the shelf. "Oh well. No harm, no foul. Now, you boys can spend the night here. It's already late now."

"Thanks, G," Dylan said as he and his friends went to get changed.

Okay, sorry about the wait. I hope you liked the chapter.

Okay, I know that Skye doesn't really have a 'Special Phantom Thief Technique', but it's called creative license. Anyways, I hope the cross-dressing didn't offend anybody. I just had to play on another joke from HM:AWL : If you have a son in either the original or the special edition, he's always described as the spitting image of you wife. Keep an eye out for the next chapter. Until then, please review!


	6. Chapter 5

1Smarts Ain't Everything That's Important

Chapter 5: How to Catch a Thief. Too Bad We Don't Have a Book Like That.

Dylan woke up late the next morning.

"Oh, good morning, Dylan," said Griffin as Dylan walked into the front of the bar. "I would have woken you earlier, but you just seemed so tired. You're friends already up and left."

Muffy walked into the bar. "Good morning," she said. She turned to Dylan. "Did things go well with that thief last night?"

"Uh, not really," replied Dylan. "I thought we had him, but he had several tricks up his sleeve that I wasn't expecting."

"Oh, that's too bad," said Muffy. "I hope nobody got hurt."

"Nah," said Dylan. "I only got a little confused. This thief is absolutely nuts and seems to have no specific motive."

"Hmm, that is weird," said Muffy. "Listen, would you mind helping me in the bar again?"

Dylan sighed as he walked towards the back room. "Fine. Not like I have anything better to do today," he said.

So through that day, Dylan dressed up as a girl again. He didn't mind. At least the dress was comfortable. Ans he even got the opportunity to make Patrick's eye match his brother's. Yes, other than Skye, all was well in his life.

In the evening, Muffy and Dylan walked home. When they arrived, Dylan immediately went downstairs.

"Hi, Dylan," Leia said as he walked down. She looked up to see him, and had trouble restraining her laughter.

"What? What is it?" asked Dylan.

"Oh, it's nothing. Nothing," replied Leia. "I just thought that those garments were meant for the females of your species."

Dylan looked down and blushed. He was still wearing cocktail dress. "Right, I need to go change clothes," he mumbled as he walked over to the bathroom.

About fifteen minutes later, Dylan walked out, changed into a fresh lab coat, shirt, and pants. He stopped and smelt the air. He looked over at Leia. What are you doing he asked as he saw her bending over a flaming contraption.

"Oh, your father built me an oven while you were gone yesterday. He said that cooking is supposed to be fun, but I've never tried it before," explained Leia.

"Oh really, and have things been going well?" asked Dylan.

"Listen buster, I admit that have don't have much experience, but I'm one darn good cook," huffed Leia. "I just don't know many recipes."

"You probably don't know any recipes," said Dylan.

"Oh yeah," said Leia. "I read one of your mother's cookbooks. I know how to cook."

"Oh really. And what are you making now?" asked Dylan.

Leia turned back to her pot. "Feast of the Sea Stew, my own secret recipe," she replied.

"And how does it taste?" asked Dylan.

"What? Are you insulting my cooking skills again?" demanded Leia.

"No, no," Dylan said defensively.

Leia smirked. "Then you'd be willing to try it," said Leia.

"Okay, okay, fine," said Dylan. He walked over to the pot. "Let's see how you did."

Leia ladled some of the stew up and offered it to Dylan.

The young scientist took a sip. "Huh, pretty good. Maybe a little salty, but still really good," he commented.

Leia blushed. "Thanks," she said. "Actually, that was my first time making that. In fact, it was the first time I tried cooking anything at all."

"What!" shouted Dylan. "You mean you didn't know what it tasted like before you offered it to me!"

Leia giggled. "Yeah, I wasn't too sure about taste-testing it myself," she said.

"And so you offer it to me without any thought that I might get sick!" fumed Dylan.

"But you didn't get sick, and I'm glad you like it," said Leia. She leaned over her tank's edge and kissed him on the cheek, forcing him to blush. "And you're always so cute when you're angry." She held the ladle up again. "And you said you liked it, so you'll eat your fill, right?"

"Just let me go get a bowl," Dylan said begrudgingly as he walked up the stairs.

Dylan went to bed that night with a painfully full stomach. However, before going to sleep, he picked up his notepad and wrote:

_Subject Mermaid_

He stopped. He looked over at the sleeping mermaid and scribbled out the first few words. He started writing again:

_Leia has been experimenting with cooking. Though she should never have had any experience with fire while in the ocean, she has proven a proper cook. I wouldn't mind seeing her continue these household experiments. It could prove that her species and mine aren't so different after all._

He placed the notepad back on his side table, wrapped himself in his blanket, and fell asleep.

--

The next morning, Dylan woke up at about seven-thirty. "Leia, you awake?" he asked.

There was no reply, so the young scientist walked upstairs. He rummaged through the kitchen for something to eat for several minutes. Soon, it became apparent that something was missing.

"Mum! Dad!" he called.

There was no response.

Dylan shrugged and returned to finding breakfast. He soon found a note on the fridge that read:

_Dear Dylan,_

_Your father and I went to Mineral Town for the day. We should be back home by late tonight._

_Lots of love,_

_Mummy_

Dylan sighed and ate a strawberry.

After he ate his make-shift breakfast, he sat down and thought about the events of the other night. Surely there had to be an easier way to catch a phantom thief. Too bad there wasn't a manual for it.

"That's it!" Dylan exclaimed as he ran back down into the basement. He perused the bookshelves of his father's studies. After about an hour, he walked over to his bed and sulked. Out of the nearly three hundred volumes his father had written, not one was about thieves or even thief traps.

"Something the matter, Dylan?" Leia asked.

"It's nothing," sighed Dylan.

"Okay," said Leia. "Say, could you bring me down some ingredients? I want to try cooking again."

Dylan stood up. "Okay, what do you want?" he asked.

"Well, I would like to try making curry. I heard that it's supposed to be a popular human dish," replied Leia.

Dylan ran up to the kitchen. He immediately reached into the fridge and pulled out about all the fish that was in there. He then searched for appropriate vegetables and the much needed spices.

About a half hour later, Dylan had returned to Leia with all she would need for any sort of curry.

"Um, how about a cookbook?" asked Leia.

Dylan sighed as he ran back upstairs.

At about noon, Leia had finished her newest experiment. "King Crustacean Curry!" she shouted as she held up the pot.

Dylan had already gotten the appropriate dining ware from the kitchen. And so lunch began.

"This is incredible!" exclaimed Dylan after the third spoonful. "The flavor! It's so hot , but the crab meat cools it down just fine. Not to mention that the shrimp gives it just the right texture."

"I'm glad you like it," said Leia.

They both stopped as they heard a knock.

"I'll get it," Dylan said. He walked up the stairs and opened the door to see a short boy with big eyes and light brown hair. "Why hello, Louis."

"Dylan! Dylan! Look what I found!" shouted Louis. He held up a sheet of paper.

Sighing, Dylan snatched the paper and read:

_Dear Mansion Owner,_

_I have heard of your great wealth, so you must have an assortment of jewels. I will be visiting tonight to see if any of these stones is suitable for my needs._

_Until midnight,_

_The Phantom Thief Skye_

"I know. I know," said Dylan. "I'll go get the guys, and we'll meet you at the villa this evening. Okay?"

"Alright," replied Louis. "I'm afraid I can't help you, though. I need to get back to my piano lessons."

"I'll see you later, then," said Dylan. He closed te door with a wave. He ran downstairs. "Leia, I'm afraid I have some unfinished business to attend to."

"Oh, really?" asked Leia.

"Yes, I'll robably be out til late. Don't stay up, though. You've been healing well, but I'd rather not risk anything," said Dylan as he grabbed his freeze ray. "This time, I'm not taking chances, either." He stopped. He turned to the stove by Leia's tank. "Could I take some of that with me?"

Leia smiled and nodded. "Of course," she said. "You know you're always welcome to whatever I make."

"Thanks," said Dylan.

--

That evening, Dylan, Jareth, Richard, Louis, and Brecken were standing in the villa's main hall.

"Why'd you bring Brecken?" asked Richard.

"Because she wanted to come see the thief," replied Jareth.

"And to see Louis," Dylan murmured to himself. He turned to Louis. "Anyways, where is your great-grandmother's jewel storage?"

"Oh, just follow me," said Louis. He led the group to a room that looked like a museum display. "This is it."

"Well, this shouldn't be too hard for Skye to find," said Jareth.

"I'm not sure if we can catch him in this crowded place," said Richard. "Sure, he won't see us, but there's too many things in the way."

"Don't worry. Just leave it to me," said Dylan. He took off the pot that he was carrying on his back. He pulled out a dish, and soon had served up some of Leia's King Crustacean Curry with Rice.

"What are you doing?" demanded Richard. "I thought we came here to capture Skye, not to eat-"

Dylan had shoved a spoonful of the curry in Richard's mouth. "Tastes good. Doesn't it?" he asked.

Richard nodded.

"Now, think how irresistible it should be for a curry lover," continued Dylan.

Richard pulled the spoon out of his mouth. "Oh, now I get it," he said.

"Good. Now, I'll set a dish of this out, and we wait," said Dylan.

The evening sort of drug on. Dylan had forbidden Jareth and Brecken from playing music, so they wouldn't alarm Skye.

At about ten, the group heard footsteps.

"Say, have you guys ever though it weird that this guy says midnight on his letters, but he always shows up at ten?" asked Jareth.

"Shh!" said Dylan.

The footsteps stopped. "Oh, what's that?" asked the familiar voice of Skye. Footsteps were heard again. Then the clinking of spoon against dish. "Why, this is wonderful!" he exclaimed.

Dylan peeked over one of the glass cases. He saw Skye preoccupied with the curry. He slowly stood up and readied his freeze ray. He pulled the trigger.

"Banzai!" Richard shouted as he tried to tackle Skye. Too bad the freeze ray hit him first. He fell to the ground stuck in a block of ice.

"Aw, crud! Richard!" Dylan shouted angrily.

Skye turned around. "You guys again?" he shouted. He smirked as he kicked the frozen Richard. "Well, this time you seem to be fighting each other. All the better for me. Special Phantom Thief Technique!"

The room darkened for a moment,. And Skye was gone.

Louis started running around the showcase room. "Oh, thank heavens," he said. "He only took one of the rubies. If it had been a diamond or and alexandrite, Gigi would have killed me."

"Yeah, sorry about that," said Dylan. He twisted the knob on his ray to defrost and melted Richard's case. "But this idiot had to get in the way."

"Well, you could have told me that you had that psycho-toy of yours," argued Richard.

"Well, you were the one who said it was too crowded in here to attack Skye," said Dylan.

Jareth sat on one of the display cases and strummed on his guitar. He sighed. "Too bad we don't have some sort of book like How to Catch a Thief," he said.

"I've looked on my shelves, and there Doesn't seem to be such a book," said Dyaln. He lifted up his pot and pocketed his ray. "I have to go now. My parents are out of town, and they don';t know I'm here." He left the mansion.

About thirty minutes late, Dylan walked into the front door. He placed the pot and other kitchen ware in the kitchen and walked downstairs. Leia was asleep.

The front door opened. "Hello, is anyone awake?" Muffy called from upstairs.

Dylan walked up. "Yeah, I'm up," he said.

Daryl walked forward. "Son, I've heard you've been having trouble with a thief lately, and so I went to the library and got you this," he said, handing a book to Dylan.

Dylan looked a the cover. 101 to Capture a Thief. "Thanks dad," he said. _At least I was right_, he thought. _It says 'capture,' not 'catch'._

Okay, sorry about taking awhile to update. UI got caught up in another story.

Oh, also, Gigi means Romana. Gigi, G-G, Great-Grandma.

Stay tuned to see if Dylan catches that wascallt wevil Skye. Until next time, please review.


	7. Chapter 6

1Smarts Ain't Everything That's Important

Chapter 6: The Stage is Set. Where is the Actor?

After about a week of studying, Dylan felt like he knew everything there was to know about thieves and capturing them. He spent every waking moment, that Leia didn't demand from him, reading and rereading the tips and guidelines of everything from thief traps to thief encounter etiquette. He knew that he would soon capture Skye for good.

"The only question is where will he strike next," said Dylan as he looked over his map of Forget-Me-Not Valley. "Let's see here. He's robbed Ruby, G, and Romana. Each of these people had a special collection. That means that the only two places that could possibly be of interest to him are the dig site and Vesta's Farm." He turned away and thought, mumbling to himself. "Well, if he's scoped out the dig site, he'll know that Richard lives there, so he'll not likely go there." He turned back to the map. "So that means Vesta's Farm would be the next target."

About an hour later, Dylan was at the front door of the house on Vesta's Farm.

Vincent opened the door. "Oh, hello Dylan," he said in his formal, yet with a country accent, voice. "Quite a lovely day out. The crops love this weather, so I do, too. If the crops feel good, then they grow bigger and better. And if they grow bigger and better, they'll bring in more money, not to mention make a better meal."

"Yeah, alright, sunshine's great," said Dylan, wading past the small talk. "Listen, Vinny, have you heard about Skye?"

"Oh, you mean that hooligan who is stealing stuff across the town," said Vincent. "Quite so, I have."

"Do you know if you have anything on the farm that he may want?" asked Dylan.

"Well, nothing that he couldn't have found at the Inner Inn, I believe," said Vincent. He thought for a moment. "Oh, wait, I do have this special crop right now, but noone else knows about but those in the family."

"Really, what is it?" asked Dylan.

The extra-large-sized Vincent pressed his finger against Dylan's nose. "I'm afraid I can't tell you that," he said. "Otherwise, it wouldn't be a secret, would it?" he said.

"I guess not," Dylan said as he swat the massive ten-year-old's hand out of his face. "Well, if anything strange happens, just call me up. I'll be ready to capture that idiot thief."

"You have my word," said Vincent.

Dylan nodded and ran off.

--

The next day, about noon, Dylan received a phone call.

"Listen, Dylan, I have received a letter in a style that is quite familiar to the other three of that Skye fellow," said Vincent.

"Got it, I'll just gather the troops and be right there," said Dylan. He hung up the phone and started gathering stuff.

"Oh, what's going on, Dylan?" asked Leia.

"It's Skye," replied Dylan. "He's back. And this time, he won't be leaving."

Leia sighed. "Oh, I'm sick and tired of this Skye business. He always seems to take up so much of your time," she complained.

Dylan stopped and turned to her. "Excuse me, I don't believe it was Skye who shoved just about every dish you could make out of a fish, crab, lobster, or octopus into my mouth this last week," he said.

"Yeah, but we don't play anymore," said Leia. "All you do is think about catching Skye."

"Listen, Leia, I promise that this will be the last time," said Dylan.

Leia blew at a strand of her wet hair. "Okay, but remember, you promised," she said.

Dylan nodded. He grabbed his pack and left.

About a half hour later, Dylan had collected Louis, Stella, and Brecken. Following Brecken's instructions, they were in the woods, looking for Jareth.

"Jareth! Where the blazes are you!" demanded Dylan.

Jareth walked out from behind a tree. He was coated in purple dust. "Hey, there, brothers and sisters," he said.

Dylan sighed. "Jareth, please tell me that you weren't playing in poison mushrooms again," he said.

"Alright, I won't tell you what you don't wanna hear," said Jareth.

Dylan sighed. "Okay, listen, tonight, we're going to capture Skye, so I certainly hope that you aren't in the middle of one of your exhaustion rituals," he said.

"Okay, dude, I'm coming," said Jareth, swaying dangerously as he walked.

After getting Richard, the gang met up in at Vesta's farm.

"Okay, gang, we all know about Skye and what a nuisance he's been. Now, it is our time to capture him and end his career," said Dylan. He pulled out several sheets of paper. "Now, here is the plan." He laid the papers on the table and looked up at the team of minors. "Hey, where's Gloria?"

"Oh, she went off to somewhere or other," said Vincent. "She's been doing it a lot lately. I'm afraid she'll be gone until late, too."

"Okay, so nix on Gloria," said Dylan. "Oh well, it calls for several creative adjustments, but nothing too hard to figure out."

So, the team spent the afternoon going over Dylan's plan. At about eight, they had a late dinner.

"So, Vincent, where is this special crop?" Dylan asked after dinner.

"Well, seeing how somehow this punk found out what it was, I suppose it wouldn't hurt to show you," said Vincent.

Arriving at a tent in the back, Vincent pulled back the door to reveal a shining interior. "Gold lumber," he said with a proud smile. "Difficult to grow, but worth a fortune."

"Wow," rest of the gang said as they stared at the shining crop.

"Okay," said Dylan. "Let's get set up."

At about ten, Skye pulled back the tent door, and covered his eyes from the shine. When he opened them up again, he saw a small red-headed girl holding a plate of what looked like curry.

"Welcome, Mr. Skye," said Brecken.

"Oh, aren't you a cute little girl," said Skye. He stopped. "Wait, you are a girl, right?"

"Yes," Brecken said with a blush.

"Then you won't mind if I do this," said Skye, striking a pose. "Maiden Chick Beam!" Pink flashed, and Brecken became frozen. He walked over and tipped her a couple times. "Alright, now this is more like it." He looked down at the curry. "Well, no sense letting this go to waste." He took hold of the plate and started eating.

About halfway through his meal, Skye felt something cold take hold of his ankles. He looked down to see Stella acting as a pair of manacles. "Oh, isn't that adorable. Maiden Chick Beam!"

Stella froze.

Skye smirked and started walking, suddenly feeling the two hundred pounds of steel that was latched to him. "Maybe that wasn't such a good idea," he told himself.

"You bet not," said Dylan as he walked out from behind one of the gold lumber. He held his freeze ray at point blank range from Skye's face.

Jareth and Richard walked out from behind other stumps, both taking fighting poses.

"Oh no, not you guys again!" Skye shouted in exasperation. He was taken by surprise when Vincent took hold of his shoulders. He looked up. "Oh, that's just great."

"Give up, Skye," said Dylan. "We've caught you."

Skye's face saddened. "Yes, I know," he said, tears developing in his eyes. "But I never wanted to be a thief."

The three teenage boys dropped their guard for a second.

"I always wanted to be-" Skye continued.

Richard lifted his fist, Jareth wielded hi guitar like a sword, and Dylan held his ray up again.

"I swear, if you say lumberjack, I'm going to knock your head clean off," said Richard.

Taken aback, Skye said, "Oh no, I would never want to be a lumberjack. I always wanted to be a curry merchant."

The three boys went lax again.

"Okay, I see why that would involve the Finest Curry, but what about the rest of that stuff?" asked Dylan.

Skye started crying. "You wouldn't understand," he said. "I needed those items for something special, something crucial."

Even Vincent let his grip loosen. "And what's that?" he asked.

Skye looked up at him, suddenly smiling. "That, my large friend, is a secret. Special Phantom Thief Technique!"

The tent somehow darkened. When it became light again, Skye was standing at the door, holding a piece of gold lumber. "It's been nice playing with ya, chaps," he said. "However, I'm afraid our game is over. But don't be sad, you'll always be able to remember this as the day you almost caught the Phantom Thief Skye." With that, he left the tent.

The four boys stared at the tent's door.

"Well, that's not cool," Jareth said after a long pause.

"Quite so. He took a piece of my gold lumber," said Vincent.

"Aw well, at least he won't be coming back," said Richard.

"Blast it, I knew I should have spent more time on chapter 16: Seeing Through Sob Stories," grumble Dylan. He sighed. "Oh well, I guess I'll just take Stella and Louis home. Vincent, would you help me with Stella."

"Certainly," said Vincent as he reached down and picked Stella up.

About an hour later, Dylan returned home, exhausted. He was surprised to find Leia awake.

"So, did you catch him?" asked Leia.

"No," said Dylan.

Leia huffed. "Dylan, you promised this would be your last time," said Leia.

"It was, it was," said Dylan. "He said he wouldn't be coming back."

"Yay, that mean you can spend more time with me," said Leia.

"Yeah, sure," Dylan said with a grimace. He yawned. "Listen, I'm tired, and Skye is probably going to be haunting my dreams, so don;'t wake me up in the morning."

"Aw, I know how to fix that," said Leia.

"Really, how?" asked Dylan.

"Come closer," said Leia.

Dylan walked closer. "Yeah so, wh-"

Leia grabbed hold of either side of Dylan's face and kissed him. After a minute, she let go. "Will that fix your dreams?" she asked teasingly.

Dylan looked like he was drunk. He staggered over to his bed. "Yeah, sure," he said before he collapsed.

Okay, well, that's the end of this chapter. I'm feeling a little edgy about the next chapter though, if anyone knows Leia's last heart event they'll know why. Anyways, until next time, please review.


	8. Chapter 7

1Smarts Ain't Everything That's Important

Chapter 7: The Kappa

About two days later, Muffy called down, "Dylan, Jareth is here."

Dylan walked up slowly. "Hey, Jareth, what's up?" he asked.

"Yeah, Dylan, you know when Vincent said that Gloria had been leaving the farm the other day?" said Jareth.

"Yeah, what about it?" asked Dylan.

"Well, I saw her the other day, and you'll never believe what she was doing," said Jareth.

"What, someone besides you actually likes poison mushrooms?" Dylan said sarcastically. "Seriously, even if a plant bit her nose off, I think she'd adore it."

"No way, bro. This is much more interesting," said Jareth. "Come on, come on. And be sure to bring your notepad."

"Fine," Dylan grumbled. He followed Jareth out as the gothic punk skipped along.

Soon, the two teenagers were on the bank of Turtle Swamp.

"What's so special here?" Dylan asked dully.

"Well, think about it, bro," said Jareth. "What would Gloria be doing here?"

"Oh, I don't know. Gathering wild herbs or something," said Dylan.

"Not even, bro," said Jareth. "She was actually doing something much more interesting. I actually couldn't believe, with how much time I spend here, that I never knew."

"Knew what?" asked Dylan.

Jareth picked his hat up off his head. "Look," he said, pulling something out of his hat.

"A cucumber?" asked Dylan.

"Ah, but hold on a minute," said Jareth. "Watch what you can do with the cucumber." He reeled his arm back.

Suddenly, humming filled the swamp.

"Yikes, like, get into the brush, bro," said Jareth, leaping away from the bank. "Gloria's coming."

Dylan walked over nonchalantly and ducked down.

Gloria walked cautiously into the clearing. She looked both left and right. However, her eye was trained to see ailing plants, not hiding people, so she did not see Dylan and Jareth. She reached into her pack and pulled out a cucumber.

"Okay, what the heck is so special about the cucumber," whispered Dylan.

"Shh," replied Jareth.

Gloria looked to both sides again before she threw the cucumber into the water. It sank with a few bubbles floating up.

Dylan stared blankly at the spot.

After about a minute, the water began to stir. What looked like a green human peeked out of the water. It continued to rise, revealing a turtle's beak and a massive turtle. It's limbs were long and ended in webbed hands with black claws. In the middle of his head was a dip where water remained.

"A kap-" Dylan started.

Jareth covered Dylan's mouth. "No talk. Write," he whispered sharply.

The kappa just sort of stood where he was for a minute. He slowly walked across the water's surface, carrying the cucumber. When he approached the edge, he looked down at the girl. "Glo... ri... a," he said slowly.

Gloria blushed. "And how are you today? Is the swamp doing well?" asked Gloria.

The kappa didn't answer. Instead, he started sniffing the air.

"Oh, what is it, kappa?" asked Gloria.

Again, the kappa didn't answer. He started walking towards to where the two boys were hiding.

"Woah, like, I'm out of here," said Jareth. He jumped up and sped off.

"Jareth?" said Gloria.

Dylan was too busy writing. He looked up just in time to see the kappa standing over him.

The kappa took hold of Dylan's shirt and lifted him up to eye level.

"Dylan?" said Gloria. "Oh my, kappa, no, don't attack him! He's a friend!"

The kappa didn't attack, however. Instead, he sniffed him. He sniffed him for several minutes before his eyes became narrow and he rasped, "Mer... maid..."

"Wha?" asked Dylan.

"What about a mermaid?" asked Gloria.

The kappa dropped Dylan and walked over to the water. He dove in, but was soon up again; this time, carrying something that was green, but not the cucumber that Gloria had thrown. He walked over to Dylan and placed it in his hand. He pointed at the bottle, then pointed at Dylan. "Bot.. tle... Be... long... To... Mer... maid..."

Dylan nodded slowly.

"Dylan, are you okay?" asked Gloria.

Dylan just stared at the bottle. "Yeah, yeah, I'm fine," he said. "Listen, I've got to go now. This bottle could be of scientific value."

"Oh, okay," said Gloria.

Dylan ran off. As soon as he was out of the swamp's forest, Jareth popped up beside him. "So, if Gloria's dating a kappa, would you please start believing in _her_?" he asked.

"Can't talk now. Have to get to Leia," replied Dylan as he ran off faster than Jareth could ever keep up with.

Soon, Dylan was back in the basement. "Leia! Leia! Look what I have!" he shouted.

Leia swam up to the top of her tank. "Oh, what is it?" she asked.

"I'm not sure," said Dylan, studying the bottle. "A kappa gave it to me and said it belonged to a mermaid."

"Oh, what's in the bottle?" asked Leia.

"I don't know," said Dylan. "Here, let me get a bottle opener."

"Don't bother," said Leia. "Hand it here."

Dylan gave her the bottle.

Leia opened her mouth wide and crunched down on the bottle's neck, cutting it cleanly. She spat out the top and pulled out the note. She gasped.

"Well, what is it?" asked Dylan.

"I-It's from my mom," said Leia.

"What?" asked Dylan.

"My mom. Oh, she must be so worried about me," said Leia. "I mean, that storm just blew me away. I had no time to talk to her or tell her where I am."

"Then you must go to her," said Dylan, stepping close to the massive tank.

"What?" asked Leia.

"You heard me, Leia," said Dylan. "It's no pr-problem. You're completely healed. You should be able to swim fine."

"B-but, Dylan," said Leia. "Th-th-that means I'd have to leave."

"I-I-I kn-n-n-know," said Dylan, tears forming in his eyes. He stomped and stood resolute. "But this is more important. You have to go to your mother, even if it's only for a short time."

"O-okay," said Leia.

Dylan reached into the tank and lifted Leia over his shoulder. "Come on, Leia. We're taking you home," he said as he walked up the stairs.

After much questioning from his parents and Jareth and a short walk to the beach, Dylan sat on the ground. He laid Leia on the sand near the shore. "Here we are," he said.

"Oh, um, thanks, Dylan," said Leia. She turned to the sea and stopped. "Well, before I go, maybe we could watch the sunset. It's been so long since I've seen it."

Dylan smiled. "Sure," he said.

Leia sort of slithered her way next to Dylan. The watched as the sun slowly fell in the sky, changing from gold to red, then from red to violet, then from violet to black.

"It's so beautiful," said Leia.

"Not as beautiful as you," said Dylan

"What?" asked Leia.

Turning a violent shade of scarlet, Dylan said, "Um, uh, I mean... You should probably get going."

Leia looked back at the ocean. "You know, I don't have to leave right now," she said.

Choking slightly, Dylan said, "N-now, Leia, you know that the l-longer you-you stay, the hard-d-der it w-wi-will be for you to l-l-leave." He swallowed back his tears. He took Leia by the shoulders and looked her in the eye. "Now, look, I need you to be strong. Your mother misses you. It wouldn't be fair if you stayed here."

Leia sighed. "You're right. And I miss her, too," said Leia. "But-"

Dylan hugged Leia forcefully. "Now, Leia," he whispered in her ear. "Now's the time. Go. Go to your mother."

After Leia was released from the hug, she looked to the sea. "You're right," she said. She did a sort of half-drag, half-slither action across the beach. "I've gotta go home." She was soon in the water and swimming away. Before she was too far, she turned around and called, "Bye, Dylan! I'll miss you! Don't forget me, okay!"

Dylan waved to her and called back, "Don't worry! This place isn't called Forget-Me-Not Valley for no reason."

With a smile, Leia turned around and swam away.

After watching her leave sight, and a good crying spell, Dylan stood up and walked home.

Oh my, could this be the end of the story?

Nah! Tempting, but no. Otherwise, I know half of you would probably hire assassins and have me hunted down and killed like a dog.

Anyways, last chance for guessing on couples.

Until next time, please review.


	9. Chapter 8

1Smarts Ain't Everything That's Important

Chapter 8: Back to the Beginning

After he woke up, Dylan walked upstairs. "Mum! Dad! I'm headed out!" he called.

"Okay, but don't stay out too late dear," called Muffy. "The weather report says that there's a serious storm coming."

"Don't worry. I won't be long," said Dylan as he walked out the door.

As Dylan walked across the yard, he heard a voice call, "Hey, Hey, you there." He turned to see a reporter stuck in one of the once-hidden cage traps that were set around the property line. The reporter pulled out a notepad and a pen. "Hey, you, aren't you the one who wrote A Young Mermaid's Gossip: The Truths and Myths of Merfolk Kind?"

Silently, Dylan walked over to the cage and took hold of a cord.

"Oh, no no no no no. Don't pull that. No, please don't-" pleaded the reporter.

Dylan pulled on the cord, and metal shutters ran down the cage's walls. "There, now it will be quiet as I work," he said as he walked back to the yard.

Dylan walked over to an array of equipment he had helped his father build. "Weather report? Ha! Pathetic," he said with a smirk. "Honestly, a serious storm? Not even close! According to these readings, a typhoon should be coming from the sea." He turned to the sea. "And a monsoon coming from the north." He turned to the direction of the waterfall. He began to muse. "Huh, interesting, that's the sort of weather that occurred just before Leia arrived. And wouldn't you know it, today would mark the third annual anniversary of her arrival here." He nodded. "Yes, now seeing how this event will have occurred twice, I suppose I will have to give it a name. Now, what would you call the mix of a monsoon and a typhoon?" He sat and thought for a moment. "Let's see...... A Typhonsoon? No, no, that won't work........ Oh, a Mophoon! What, no! That sounds like some sort of insect...... Oh, I know, a Monstyphoon! Hmm, close. A Monstyphoon, a monstah-phoon, a monster-phoon. Why, yes. Monster-phoon! That's perfect!" He stopped and gasped. "Wait! A Monster-phooon! Oh dear!... Oh dear! Oh dear! Oh dear!" He ran out of the yard. "I've got to warn everyone!"

Now, Dylan wasn't worried about too many people. Almost none of them lived near water. However, the dig site was just below the waterfall, probably where the most damage would be dealt.

As he ran, Dylan noticed someone running in front of him. Or was it someone? It was green! _Oh wait, can it be?_ he thought. He ran faster.

"Kappa, what are you doing here?" Dylan asked as he caught up with the creature.

"Bad... Storm...." the kappa rasped. "Farm... In... Dan... ger.... Must... Pro... tect.... Glo... ri... a...."

Dylan nodded. "But what can you do?" he asked.

"Steer... Wa... Ter... A... way... With...Trench...." replied the kappa.

"Okay, good luck with that," Dylan said as they reached the farm. He ran past as the kappa ran towards it.

As Dylan approached the archaeologists' cottage, he shouted, "Hey! Carter! Flora! Richard!"

"Up here, dang it!" Richard shouted down from the roof. "I'm trying to activate this storm shield, but the darn thing won't open!"

Dylan found the ladder leaning against the cottage's wall. He skipped up and ran over to the control panel. "Get out of the way," he said as he pushed Richard aside. He started tapping away at buttons. "Man, it's a good thing my father installed this for you guys."

After about a minute, a green light turned on and whirring could be heard as a giant piece of machinery stretched out of the top of the house. It came up as a pole, but soon expanded into a giant umbrella.

"Alright, that should do it. Just stay inside, and keep your folks inside," Dylan said as he ran to the edge of the roof. "This shield is supposed to protect your cottage and the dig site, but I'm not making any promises." He jumped off the building and ran down the dirt path. As he ran past the farm, he noticed that the kappa had dug a moat-sized trench within that small amount of time. "Wow! I never knew kappas were such good diggers. Maybe I should research him to see what all he can do."

Dylan approached Guastafa and Nami's yurt. He knocked on the door.

Jareth answered the door. "Why, hello, Dylan," he said. "Wonderful weather we're having."

"Yes, well, you better warn you parents and get ready," said Dylan. "A Monster-phoon is coming!"

"A Monster... phoon?" asked Jareth.

"A monsoon and a typhoon are going to come together and merge. It won't be a pretty picture," explained Dylan.

"Okay, I'll go tell my folks," said Jareth. He smiled slyly. "Keep safe, yourself." He closed the door.

Dylan ran home. He rocketed through the door. "Dad! Dad! Storm Defense Protocol needed!" he shouted.

Daryl ran into the living room. "What! What's going on?" he asked.

"A monsoon and a typhoon are about to impact," said Dylan. "We've got to hurry and get the Storm Defense Protocol up and running."

Daryl nodded. He walked over to the wall and smacked it with his fist. A small computer jutted out. He started typing furiously. "Storm Defense Protocol: On!" he shouted after a minute. As he continued, he yelled things like, "Storm Shield: Active and fully-functional!", "Storm Surveillance: Activated and on call!", and "Reporters' Cages: Secured!"

Dylan nodded as he sat down beside his father. "This is going to be a good one. I've decided to call such a phenomenon a Monster-phoon."

Daryl nodded. "Not bad. Not bad," he said. He turned and started typing again. "Well then, let's see what this Monster-phoon can do!"

About a half hour later, it started to sprinkle. Swoon after, the rain poured and the winds howled.

"Oh my," said Muffy. "Why, I pity any critter who's out and about today."

There was a knock at the door.

"Oh good heavens! You can't be serious! Who could ever be out in this weather?" Muffy said as she walked over and opened the door.

Brecken literally flew in. After the door was closed, she ran up to Dylan and said, "Oh, Dylan. Dylan! You've got to go help Jareth!"

"What? But I taught him how to use the Storm Security Shield," said Dylan.

"Yes, the shield's up, but Jareth isn't home!" cried Brecken.

"What!" shouted Dylan.

"He ran out into the storm," said Brecken, her eyes brimming with tears. "He said it was nature's ultimate machine of death. He went running out into it." She started breaking down into tears.

"Oh, there, there," Muffy said as she embraced Brecken. "Now you just come into the kitchen and get yourself some hot chocolate. You're shaking like a leaf."

Dylan ran over to the door and thrust it open.

"And what are you doing, young man!" demanded Muffy.

Dylan turned to his mother. "I'm going out to get Jareth. That lunatic is going too far this time," he said.

"Dylan, you can't be serious!" cried Muffy.

Dylan turned back to the door. "Don't worry. I'll be fine. If you worry about anyone, it should be Jareth," he said before he ran out.

"Dylan, come back!" Muffy shouted, but there was no reply.

Dylan ran as fast as he could. "Oh, blast you, Jareth! Where would you go!" he shouted as he ran. "Let's see here, it I was a suicidal maniac bent on winning the heart of a sadistic nature, where would I go?" He thought as he ran. "Of course! Where the monsoon and the typhoon would meet!"

Dylan ran towards the river's bridge. He saw Jareth sitting on it, facing the waterfall and playing his guitar. "Jareth, you idiot! Get back inside before I kill you! That is, if the storm doesn't kill us both!" he shouted.

Jareth looked over at Dylan. "Oh, Dylan! You've come for the show," he said merrily.

"No, I came to get you to go back home!" Dylan roared over the rainfall.

"Sorry, bro, but I'm not going," replied Jareth. "I'm going to show _her_ just how devoted I am. I'm going to sacrifice all my energy! Test the limits! Risk my life! All for _her_!"

"Darn it, Jareth,_ she_'s not going to come!" Dylan shouted from the edge of the bridge. "I told you a thousand times, _she_ is not real!"

Jareth laughed like a maniac. "Oh, but my friend, _she_ is real!" he shouted with glee. "_She_ is, and _she_'s going to get the show of a lifetime."

A crash could be heard. Dylan looked and saw that the waterfall was flooding. He looked the other way and saw the typhoon nearing the coastline. He looked at Jareth, who was still playing his guitar. He laughed nervously. "Okay, okay. I believe in _her_," he said. "Now, you can come home, and we can all be safe."

"Not even, bro! If you believe in _her_, then you know why I'm doing this!" Jareth shouted in reply.

Dylan looked to either side as the disasters approached. Cursing himself, he ran onto the bridge to grab Jareth. However, before he reached the gothic hippie, a black flash appeared and disappeared with him. Dylan was alone, and only realized his mistake too late. He braced himself for impact.

--

"Dylan... Dylan..." floated a voice.

Dylan opened his eyes groggily. He looked up to see a woman looking down at him. "Huh? Whuh? Is this... heaven?" he asked.

The woman giggled. "Oh my, Dylan, you always were good with compliments," she said.

Dylan shook his head and looked up. "Leia?" he asked. He sat up and held his head. "Oh, what happened?"

"I saved you," said Leia. "You got caught in that storm, and I was fortunate enough to get here in time to save you."

"The storm," said Dylan. His head shot up. "Oh, good heavens! The storm! What happened to Jareth!"

"Dude, over here!" Jareth shouted.

Dylan turned to see Jareth run onto the beach. With Jareth was a sandy-blond-haired woman. "Jareth, that's not-" he started.

Jareth came to a stop in front of Dylan, breathing heavily. He stood up and gestured to the woman beside him. "Yep, this is none other than the Witch Princess herself," he said.

"Yes, I was fortunate enough to save him during that storm," said Witch Princess, smiling down at Dylan. "I am very sorry about that. I didn't have time to save you both." She turned to Jareth and whacked him over the head. "And it's all your fault. Honestly, there's a difference between exhausting yourself and killing yourself."

"Like, sorry," said Jareth.

Witch Princess hugged him. "Just don't do it again," she half-hissed. "You had me worried. Honestly, only one true believer, and he tries to kill himself."

"Aw, aren't they adorable," said Leia. She leaned into Dylan. "And my mother gave me permission to come back. She said I could stay. Isn't that great."

Dylan would have answered, but he was interrupted by someone shouting, "Hey there! Request for permission to come ashore."

The four on land looked to see a small boat coming across the waters. It was silver and gold and had a pair of pure white sails. As it beached, they could read the name _S. S. Curry_ on the side.

"Oh no, it can't be," groaned Dylan.

A white-haired man hopped ff the ship and looked at the foursome. "Ah, it's great to be back," he said.

"What are you doing here Skye?" asked Dylan.

"Well, no thievery, if that's what you're thinking," said Skye, tipping his new cap. "I'm an international curry chef now. Run my own business: Royal Curry Castle."

"And, so, why are you here?" Dylan asked again.

"Ah, but introductions first," said Skye. He hopped back on board the boat and pushed a ramp off the edge. He ran down and said, "Here is the prince, and here is the princess!"

A young woman with extremely long black hair and a yellow kimono stepped down the ramp. She looked at the crew and bowed.

"Yep," Skye said as he wrapped an arm around Keria. "Sorry, about all that trouble I caused ya, but it was all to wake up this here cutie. Her name's Keria."

Keria gestured towards Dylan.

"Oh, uh, well, yes, that is the boy who seemed to have an apparent liking for cross-dressing," Skye told Keria, blushing.

Dylan fumed as he sat.

Keria gestured to Dylan again.

"Now, what's she asking?" asked Dylan.

Skye blushed harder. "Actually, she's saying that you certainly do have the body to cross-dress," he replied sheepishly.

Leia and Witch Princess laughed.

"Yes, my Dylan does have an adorable figure, doesn't he?" said Leia.

Dylan fumed again. "Okay, so why are you here?" he demanded from Skye.

"Oh," said Skye. "Oh, yes, that's right. The reason we came here was to get that curry recipe from you. You know, the one that you used to try and capture me."

"Oh, I made that curry," said Leia. "I could show you how if you want."

Skye looked and Leia and almost fainted out of shock. "A m-m-muh-muh, a m-mermaid," he stuttered.

"Yep," replied Leia. She reached out to Dylan. "And if someone would be so kind as to carry me, I would be glad to show you how to make King Crustacean Curry."

Dylan sighed and rolled his eyes. He stood up, picked Leia up, and carried her bridal style to his house.

--

As soon as Dylan entered his house, Muffy ran over and just about hugged the life out of him. "Oh, thank heavens! I was so worried," she said.

"*Cough* Mom, You're kinda crushing me," said Dylan. "And Leia, too."

Muffy let go and stood back. "Oh, Leia, you're back!" she exclaimed. "Oh, how wonderful."

"Nice to see you, too, Muffy," Leia said as she tried to regain her breath.

Dylan walked down the stairs, Skye, Jareth, and the others following him.

After Leia had shown Skye how to make King Crustacean Curry, the ex-thief bowed and said, "Thank you very much. Now, as Keria and I stay in town for a while, I believe we'll stay at the Inner Inn."

He and Keria went upstairs and left.

Witch Princess stretched back. She said, "Yeah, it's been nice to see you all, but I have to get going."

"What, so soon?" asked Jareth, catching her hand.

Witch Princess looked back at him. She huffed. "Oh, for heaven's sake, I'm only going off to plant poison mushrooms and harass the Harvest Goddess. I'm not going to disappear." She pulled her hand away and thumped him on the head. "And don't go trying to commit suicide again, idiot!" With that, she walked up the stairs, too.

Dylan laughed. "Well, let's see here. Leia is living with me in the basement, you're a devout follower of the Witch Princess, and Skye is going to be pilfering food from your grandmother's kitchen," he said. "Is it just me, or are we back at the beginning?"

Okay, that's almost the end of the story. There's still an epilogue. Sorry, though, it's more like a 15 week skip than a 15 year skip. Anyways, I hoped you enjoyed it. Until next time, please review.


	10. Epilogue

Smarts Ain't Everything That's Important

Epilogue: Fish Out of Water

Dylan walked downstairs to his and Leia's room, carrying Leia bridal-style, this time for the real thing. He was walking over to put Lea back in her tank, but she started flipping in his arms.

"No, no, no," she shouted. "Don't put me in the tank, put me in bed."

Dylan stared blankly at her, his eyes wide.

Leia scoffed. "Never mind. I'll do it myself," she said. She jerked herself out of Dylan's grip and landed on the floor. She proceeded to half-drag, half-slither her way to the bed.

Dylan just watched Leia. When she had pulled herself into the bed, he blurted out, "But aren't mermaids supposed to stay in water?"

Leia stared at him for a minute. Then she started laughing. "Oh, Dylan, you silly. I'm not a fish. I can breathe above water," she said. She stopped laughing and blushed. "Besides, aren't a husband and wife supposed to sleep together?"

Dylan turned scarlet. "Well, yes, but I figured you would be more comfortable in the water," he said, looking down at his shoes.

Leia giggled and stretched a hand towards Dylan. "Then come on. Let us sleep together, honey," she said.

Dylan carefully walked over. He slid in bed slowly. However, when he found himself lying next to Leia, he felt more comfortable.

That night, husband and wife both slept peacefully.

Okay, that's the end of it. I hope you liked the story.

Okay, before I go away, maybe I should explain a few things. One, Dylan was fifteen at the beginning of the story, and three years, at least, passed in the story. 15+3=18, it's legal that he married Leia. Second, why put Leia in the bed? Because I find it stupid that she sits in the duck pond in the game. I would think the requirement for her would be for Daryl to build you an aquarium, not buy a duck pond. Besides, hopefully not offending anyone, how the heck does Leia get pregnant if she sits out in the pond all the time.

Also, as a bonus, seeing how Leia is living downstairs, she can't be blown away by a storm (which is another stupid game feature).

Anyways, I might write another Harvest Moon story, but I have other stories to attend to for now.

Until next time.

Mission Complete.

Signed: MasterofHearts1313


End file.
